How to Reduce Costs to Protesters and Streamline the Bid Protest Process Through Agency Level Protests
Most bid protests are filed with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) or brought before the Court of Federal Claims. However, there’s a third, often over-looked, forum to bring a bid protest – before the procuring agency itself. Agency-level protests were officially authorized by President Clinton in 1995 and are governed by Section 33.103 of...
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PPP: How to Comply With the “Economic Uncertainty” Certification Requirement
IMPORTANT UPDATE TO THIS BLOG POST: On May 5, 2020 the SBA extended the safe harbor deadline by which recipients of PPP loans may payback the loan in its entirety and avoid the economic necessity certification to May 14. As we previously addressed on April 28, the SBA and the Department of the Treasury...
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Loans Above $2 Million Taken Under the PPP Will Be Audited According to Treasury Secretary Mnuchin
As we have written about extensively, the CARES Act enacted in response to the coronavirus crisis established a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) to provide forgivable loans to small businesses to sustain their payrolls. However, the loan can only be forgiven if certain conditions are met. In mid-April, the PPP received public scrutiny after several...
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OHA Decision Illustrates the Importance of Reviewing Small Business Set-Aside Joint Venture Agreements Before Each New Opportunity
In CVE Protest of KTS Solutions Inc. (“KTS”), No. CVE-146-P, the SBA Office of Hearings and Appeals reminded everyone why it is vital to amend or supplement their joint venture agreement whenever your joint venture seeks a new bidding opportunity. KTS was connected to a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs solicitation for non-emergency, special...
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Paycheck Protection Program: New FAQ Addresses Retroactive “Economic Uncertainty” Certification Requirement and May 7, 2020 Safe Harbor
On April 24, 2020, the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Health Care Enhancement Act were signed into law. The Act includes an additional $310 billion for the PPP, which ran out of funds in mid-April. The additional funds will allow small business an opportunity to obtain potentially forgivable loans. On April 23, 2020, the...
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Federal Contractors Should Tread Carefully Despite Supreme Court’s Decision on Age Discrimination Only Applying to Employees of the Federal Government
On April 6, 2020, the Supreme Court decided Babb v. Wilkie, interpreting the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) as it relates to federal government employees. The Court noted the curious language in the Act relating to federal employees differed from the typical language in anti-discrimination statutes. This language stated that “personnel actions affecting...
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